Claw-bab



UNITED s'rkfrns PATENT OFFICE.

G. H. BEARD, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO.

CLAW-BAR.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 28,645, dated June 12, 1860.-

ATo all whom fit 'may concern:

Be it known that I, Gr. H. BEARD, of Oincinnati, in the county ofHamilton and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvementin Instruments for Drawing Spikes on Railroads, &c., W'hich I HaveDenominated a Claw-Bar; and I do hereby declare that the following is afull and exact description of the same, reference being had to theaccompanying drawings and the letters of reference marked thereon andforming a part of this specification.

The nature of my invention relates to an improvement in the constructionof instruments for drawing spikes, particularly on railroads whererepairing is necessary. Claw bars for drawing nails and spikes arecommon. They also have some variety of form and construction, but amongthem all none of the more simple and practical forms have been foundperfectly adapted to the somewhat variable requirements of road buildingand repairing. Among the requisites to constitute a good, efficient andconvenient instrument for these purposes, may be named; first, that itshall grip the spike in such a manner as to furnish a great leverage tostart the spike; second, that it shall be of such a nature andconstruction as to be operated for the first starting of the spike withgreat power in a narrow space, as between two rails, operating at rightangles with reference to them; and furthermore it should not only be soconstructed and of such a nature as after starting the spike to bereadily applied to the rail as a fulcrum, but yet be so furnished as tooperate equally well when the rail is not in such relative position aswill allow it to be so used. Again the gripping surfaces should be ofsuch a form as to furnish a good seat for the head of the spike duringthe drawing operation to prevent injury and to secure a fair hold. Toobtain the above advantages is the object of my invention which I willnow proceed to describe, as follows.

In the accompanying drawings Figure l is a side view. Fig. 2 is a plan.Fig. 3 is a side view showing the bar when it takes hold of the spikeand Fig. 4L is a section illustrating also the position of the spikewhen drawn.

The same letters of reference indicate similar parts in each figure.

A common bar A has formed upon its end the two curved jaws B, the curvesbeing formed as seen in the drawing, with reference to the lever or barA, and the inner sides of the jaws are parallel to each other as shown,at E, so as to allowvthe spike to assume the position shown in Fig. 4L,as well as any intermediate position without bending it in the spacebetween the jaws. The upper inner corners of the jaws are beveled insuch a manner as to form a resting place for the head of the spike,having a U-shaped cross sect-ion, but conforming to a short curve whichwhile it commences at nothing or nearly so, at the point runs deeper andout again to the surface about the back end of the slot formed betweenthe two jaws B. This curve is so short and is aranged, as shown, withreference to the other parts that the head of the spike is sure to havea fair'seat in all the different stages of the drawing operation.

a, a, are the beveled surfaces.

C is a heel arranged as shown, and forming part of the claw bar, so asto come into operation as a fulcrum after the spike has been startedfrom its position in the wood by the short and powerful leverage0btained near the point of the jaws, while the bar is operating at thecommencement in, or nearly in, a line with, or parallel to, the spike.The heel C also serves to get a hold upon a rail when operating in anarow space between the rails, so that the instrument may not slip uponthe rail, the rail being used as a fulcrum. When made in this form thejaws are exceedingly strong. In using the instrument the point isslipped so as to embrace the head of the spike by means of a slightthrust. When the bar is pushed backward and as the spike starts and isdrawn it changes its position relatively to the instrument, gradually,during the operation from the one shown in Fig. 3 to the one illustratedin Fig. 4. When the heel C comes in contact with the sleeper, thefulcomprising the three following and several features, viz., theU-shaped space E receding toward the heel to allow the necessarytraverse to the spike in the process of drawing; the heel C, and therecess formed by the inclined surfaces a, a, to receive the head of thespike all substantially as described.

G. H. BEARD. Witnesses:

WM. CLOUGH, CHARLES L. FISHER.

